Balloon angioplasty and stenting procedures (percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, PTCA) of atherosclerotic lesions in the ostia of arteries branching off from aorta have proven to be difficult. In addition, percutaneous transluminal angioplasty in the ostia of arteries branching off from aorta has been associated with increased risk of operative problems such as ostial trauma, inability to inflate balloon with appropriate guide catheter support, and an increased need for intracoronary manipulation. Similar issues may exist with percutaneous transluminal angioplasty and stenting (PTAS) of renal arteries. Many of the difficulties and risks encountered with conventional techniques used in these procedures can be traced to difficulties in visualizing the geometrical shape of the ostia of arteries.
The geometrical shape of the ostia of arteries cannot be easily visualized using standard visualization techniques such as X-Ray imaging using a C-Arm. The lack of visualization is due to the limitations of 2D X-ray imaging, which is not able to capture the true 3D geometrical shape of the ostia. This impediment of visualization may lead to inaccuracies in balloon angioplasty, deployment of stents, and other complications. For example, if a stent is not positioned correctly and extends beyond the ostium of a vessel, cannulation of another guide wire into the vessel and subsequent access to the vessel becomes extremely difficult. Additionally, if a stent does not appropriately cover the atherosclerotic lesion, the risk of restenosis increases considerably. Thus, accurate placement of a stent at the ostium of an aortic arterial branch is essential.
Recently, devices or methods that assist in placement of stents at ostium of blood vessels have been developed. However, many of these techniques may not provide sufficient information for accurate stent placement and may not be easy to use. Thus, there exists a need in the art to develop medical devices that sense endoluminal ostial geometry of blood vessels to assist in procedures such as PTCA.